The Noise We Make: Luke Howell on Turning Insight into Action at Scale

“Real progress happens when artists, promoters, venues, suppliers, and audiences all see themselves as part of the system, rather than working in isolation.”

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Every sound tells a story.

The Noise We Make is a Hope Solutions series that listens to the people behind the noise: the artists, organisers, and changemakers using creativity as a force for good. Together, we explore what progress sounds like, and how the choices we make today will echo in the future.

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Luke Howell’s relationship with sustainability didn’t start in a boardroom: it started on the road.

Born into a family of festival organisers and circus performers, Luke grew up immersed in renewable energy, radical creativity, and the early roots of the UK environmental movement. By the age of seven, his parents had transformed their solar-powered circus into a travelling eco-education centre, touring the UK and Europe and introducing millions of school children to clean technology, conservation and sustainable living - decades before sustainability entered the mainstream.

Throughout his teenage years, Luke helped run renewable energy and conservation exhibits, learning how to translate complex ideas into simple, engaging experiences. Communicating sustainability without preaching, weaving it naturally into culture and creativity wasn’t a strategy; it was second nature.

Today, Luke is the Founder and Director of Hope Solutions, a specialist consultancy operating behind the scenes of some of the world’s most visible and ambitious sustainability programmes and initiatives in entertainment. His work spans global tours, major cultural institutions, and industry-defining moments, including leading the team behind Coldplay’s 59% emissions reduction on their $1bn world tour, advising The Earthshot Prize on event delivery, and supporting clients such as Netflix, Warner Music Group, Spotify, and Glastonbury Festival.

At the heart of Luke’s approach is a simple belief: entertainment meets people where they are. When sustainability is woven creatively into music, media and events (rather than delivered as instruction) it has the power to shift perspectives, behaviours and entire systems.

So without further ado, let’s jump into the questions… 

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The Noise You Make: What kind of impact are you (or your organisation) making through your work right now?

Right now, the impact we’re focused on is giving the live music and events industries something they’ve never really had before: clarity. For a long time, people have wanted to take action on sustainability, but without shared, sector-specific data it’s been hard to know where to focus or how to align.

Recently, that’s taken the form of a landmark collaboration we convened and supported with the MIT Climate Machine, Live Nation, Warner Music Group, and Coldplay: delivering the first comprehensive, data-driven assessment of live music’s carbon footprint across the UK and US. Drawing on data from over 80,000 real events, the work gives the industry a clear, evidence-based picture of where emissions actually come from, and where meaningful reductions are possible.

More broadly, the impact we’re making at Hope Solutions is about turning evidence into action. Helping artists, promoters, venues, and suppliers work from the same baseline, ask better questions and make informed decisions: whether that’s around touring routes, travel, food, energy, or materials. When sustainability is grounded in real-world data and shared understanding, it becomes far easier to embed it into how live entertainment is designed and delivered at scale.

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The Noise You Hear: What signals, movements, or shifts in the industry are catching your attention?

What’s getting loudest for me right now is the shift from good intentions to real, measurable action - and, crucially, seeing those two things happen together.

Across the industry, more artists, tours, and festivals are raising the bar on what “doing the right thing” actually means. It’s no longer just statements or aspirations; it’s targets, data, and results. Coldplay’s tour is a good example of that balance: delivering a 59% reduction in direct CO₂e impacts compared to the previous tour, while also backing that up with tangible action like planting and protecting millions of trees. That combination of ambition and accountability really cuts through.

I’m also seeing sustainability move into the core of production planning, rather than sitting off to the side. When festivals like Glastonbury commit to operating without fossil fuels and eliminating single-use plastics, it sends a clear signal that large-scale operational change is possible, and once it’s possible at that level, it starts to feel like the baseline.

Another important shift is collaboration. Whether it’s artists like Depeche Mode building networks of conservation partners, or wider efforts like the work we convened with Coldplay, Live Nation, Warner Music Group, and MIT to study the impacts of live music across the UK and US, there’s a growing appetite to align around shared evidence. That move towards common standards and consistent measurement, something we’re also pushing through the Carbon Accounting Alliance, is where real scale comes from.

And alongside all of that, there’s innovation that brings energy and creativity into the conversation. Clean-tech solutions like tourable battery systems, kinetic dance floors, and energy bikes show that sustainability doesn’t have to feel restrictive: it can be participatory, imaginative, and genuinely exciting.

Overall, the noise I’m hearing is momentum: action informed by measurement, collaboration replacing isolation, and a growing confidence that sustainability in live events can be delivered with care, creativity, and credibility.

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The Noise That Needs to Change: What’s still too loud, too quiet, or missing altogether in the sustainability conversation?

What’s still too loud is the idea that sustainability is someone else’s responsibility, or something that can be bolted on at the end. What’s still too quiet is honest conversation about the scale of change that’s actually needed… and the trade-offs involved.

What’s missing altogether, at times, is shared accountability. Real progress happens when artists, promoters, venues, suppliers, and audiences all see themselves as part of the system, rather than working in isolation.

The Quiet Work: What behind-the-scenes actions make the biggest difference?

The quiet work is measurement, collaboration and follow-through. Taking the time to gather the right data, building trust across teams and partners, and then sticking with the changes even when they’re not visible or easy.

It’s the behind-the-scenes decisions - in planning, routing, procurement, and production - that rarely make headlines but ultimately shape the real impact of live entertainment.

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The Next Sound: What’s next for you? What sound would you love the future of live events to make?

For me, what’s next is continuing to help the industry move from insight to action: using shared data and practical tools to make lower-impact choices the default, not the exception.

As for the sound I’d love the future of live events and entertainment to make: one of ambition without excess. Events and projects that still feel powerful, joyful, and collective, but are designed with care for people and the planet built in from the start.

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Connect with Luke on LinkedIn 

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